Clay Camp 2015

Another Clay Camp has come and gone.  Once again the NWPCG met at beautiful Camp Huston just outside Goldbar, Washington.  This year, we expanded it to 4 day and offered numerous classes. The response was fantastic.  We had more people want to sign up than there were beds for. Luckily for the guild, there was no other group meeting the same weekend,  so we were able to upgrade to the larger cabin.

                                     My room was the one in the middle.

 This cabin had a much larger common room that was perfect for classes. Good thing, as the two I took were totally full and would have had a hard time fitting into the smaller cabin.

View of the walkway going from the lodge to the cabins

The weather was somewhat cooperative. It did rain (hey, it is outside Seattle) but not all the time.  Not hot enough for sticky clay.

I was fortunate enough to be able to take a class from the great Marie Segal. She was teaching her new earring technique. We were introduced to the new Fimo  Profesional clay. I love it! From 6 basic colors, over 150 colors can be blended. The color mixing chart included was worth the price of the class.  I will post the beautiful earrings I made when I have time to photograph them.

    I  got to take the first class ever taught by our resident caning guru Kim  Day. She taught us several translucent canes. Then she showed how to make a flower cane. Each of us chose different colors, so we ended up with a garden of blooms. We'd made enough cane to share around so we all ended up with at least 4 different canes to take home.  I am not a caner, but I was able to produce a lovely flower. Kim then taught how to make either a tile or bangle bracelet.  I am so proud of my bangle ... I hope to have time to take pictures and post tomorrow.

One of the best things  about this gathering is getting to spend time with people who share a similar hobby. We get to walk about and see what other artists are doing, sharing tips, techniques and ideas. And seeing what new tools are out there. I fell in love with the cane slicer from Lucy Tools. It resembles a small guillotine but it sure makes slicing a cane easy. I would have to be a production artist, though, to justify  the cost.

 Kathy's new toy.

you can barely see the birdie sitting in her nest hidden in the walkway outside our cabin.

I had treated myself on Mother's day to a new Nook Tablet. All my pictures were taken on it. I have yet to figure out how to  edit them, or how to share with social media  (such as FB).  I feel pretty good about writing this entry using the tablet and I figured out how to add the pictures to it.